Category Archives: Gun Trusts

This is about Possession…knowing more about how to possess your firearms legally without going to jail. To us, possession generally doesn’t get the attention of criminal activities using firearms. But for the majority of gun owners in America, possession laws are probably one of the most important things to understand when owning a firearm.

Possession laws are some of the most misunderstood laws facing gun owners. Far more than the criminal laws which generally make a lot more sense because they are relating to a specific crime (and usually a violent act).

Here’s a great example relating to a situation that happened in New Jersey. They have some of the strictest “Possession Laws” in the country. They have very strict firearm possession laws that result in jail time. A great article describing this was published in New Jersey 101.5, “A push to cut those caught with guns a little slack.”

As you may have heard in various news stories, several people (from other states who have legal gun permits) have been arrested and are facing jail time because of accidentally bringing their firearms in the Garden State. Some New Jersey legislators, led by Jon Bramnick, an Assembly Republican leader, believe this is not right and are trying to change the law to be much less restrictive.

They would like to see “prosecutorial discretion when it comes to reducing the level of the crime and not imposing a mandatory jail term,” according to Branmick. Their point is not about “weakening gun laws” but making some of these more discretionary based on certain circumstances. For example, there are some great quotes from the article that help summarize why this is important…

Bramnick said, “Another reason is because of situations that could result in the arrest of someone who has legally purchased a gun in another state, but brought it to New Jersey tor a non-criminal purpose, such as a gift. For example, a grandmother from Pennsylvania legally buys a BB gun for her grandson, she could be arrested and placed behind bars if she brings the firearm to New Jersey. The law is clear, there is no plea bargaining, it is minimum mandatory three years in prison for grandma.”

While we might not be in New Jersey, our state has local “possession laws” that are specific to us as well. Do you know what they are and how they can affect you? Do we have a mandatory prison term for certain violations of possession laws? Can your friends and family bring their guns into our state to lawfully carry and shoot? These are just a few of the many questions that surround the issue of possession.

Whether the law happens to be a good one or a stupid one, we, as gun owners, are responsible to know what these are and how they affect us as residents of our fair state. I hope to continue writing about these to help you better understand the laws and the impact they can have on your life and the lives of your loved ones. Suffice it to say, they are complicated and sometimes not as clear as you would like them to be. But the law doesn’t have much forgiveness for a lack of understanding…as they say, ignorance is no excuse for violating a law. Gun laws aren’t an exception. Hopefully we can help you continue to learn more about possession laws so you can stay out of jail and enjoy your firearms!

NOTE: You might see this (or similar) post on some of our gun law attorney members blogs throughout the U.S. – we help provide them with some of their valuable content so their individual readers can have access to this information. Our goal is to help as many gun owners as we can in America better understand the laws…this is one of the ways we can help ensure this happens. They aren’t plagiarizing our content, they are using it with our permission to help their own audiences.

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